Rep. Mike Kelly, more than 70 House members demand to know if Biden administration will pay $450,000 to illegal immigrants

U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA) and more than 70 members of the U.S. House of Representatives signed onto a letter to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and other top Biden administration officials demanding answers after the Wall Street Journal reported the Biden administration is considering offering almost $1 million per family to those who were taken into custody and separated after illegally crossing our Southern border. WSJ reports payments could be up to $450,000 per person and up to $1 million per family. The total potential payout could be $1 billion or more, WSJ reports. These payments may be larger than some of the settlements given to the victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks.

In the letter, Kelly and lawmakers urge the Departments of Homeland Security, Justice, and Health & Human Services to respond to the reporting; to release the total amount of American taxpayer funding the administration plans to authorize to settle the cases; and state whether or not illegal immigrants are given preferential treatment over persons attempting to legally immigrate to the United States.

 
After joining the letter, Rep. Kelly issued the following statement:

“The American people deserve to know how their tax dollars are being spent, and if any of that money is going toward settlements with illegal immigrants. I’m calling on Secretary Mayorkas, Attorney General Garland, and Secretary Becerra to answer our questions as quickly as possible. The hardworking people in my district, and across the country, are feeling the financial pinch at the gas station and the grocery store due to rising inflation. We have a nearly $29 trillion national debt. We should not be prioritizing those who illegally entered our country over our law-abiding constituents.”